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[Q] What's the legal basis for voiding warranty on rooted phone?

What's the legal basis for voiding warranty on rooted phones?
Isn't that like HP telling me that my desktop hardware warrently is void since I changed my opertaing system, or because I added memory to the desktop computer?
Hypothetically, lets say a button does not work on my rooted phone.
If I reset the phone back to the original OS and unroot it, and than somehow the carrier or the manufacturer finds out that the phone was rooted in the past. Do they have any legal basis to void the warranty?
I mean, if the button is broken (or a screen is broken, etc...), it has nothing to do with the software and clearly is a hardware problem.

The legal basis that you signed a TOS with your carrier, End Of Story.

johnston9234 said:
The legal basis that you signed a TOS with your carrier, End Of Story.
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A lot of Canadian carriers TOS do not specifiy anything about the software part of the device but rather seem to cover any physical modification and damage. Good luck returning your device to the maker via your carrier though. I was lucky enough and got my Nexus S repaired by Samsung, but not after unrooting it.

can anyone point to a documented case where a warranty claim was denied because of root?

Documented?
rudeguy said:
can anyone point to a documented case where a warranty claim was denied because of root?
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Documented? No, but I was denied a warranty claim on my Motorola Flipout (I know, it was bad) based on the fact that it was rooted! no custom rom or even recovery! Just rooted.
Sadly, you CAN legally be turned down on a warranty for being on a rooted device.

johnston9234 said:
The legal basis that you signed a TOS with your carrier, End Of Story.
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Click to collapse
Desktop's computers also have a warrently and service agreement (I think).
But they could not void the hardware warranty just because you manipulated the OS or software. In my experience, they just reformat the hard drive and if the problem goes away they would not cover any repair since this is clearly a software issue. If the problem persisted after reinstalling the original factory provided software the computer would be repaired or replaced. I thought that there was no legal basis to void a hardware warranty in that case?

My advice is to seek out the most stupid/ clueless looking workers in your local mobile provider store and take up any problems with them.

Well depending on who your carrier is it differs. I am with verizon and was told by two frirnds the work for customer service that rooting ur phone no longer besides warrenty.
Sent from my ADR6400L using XDA App

[Q] Nexus 5 and warranty issues with rooting

Hi!
So I already asked this on the offical Nexus forums, but I thought this question might actually fit much better here.
I'm planning on buying Nexus 5 from my mobile network operator EMT wich is a local operator in Estonia. I'm sure I will at some point root the phone and install custom ROM on it so is this going to void warranty? As I read if the phone isn't bought directly from Google they aren't responsible for warranty so I guess then it's going to local LG service center. So does LG have a problem with rooting and custom ROMs?
A while back I bought HTC One X from EMT(local mobile network operator), so of course as I went home first thing I did was root my phone and install a custom ROM. Then I noticed the phone had a defect, the screen wasn't properly attatched to rest of the case, it was loose and it moved if you pushed on it. The defect wasn't apparent right away because the part where it was loose was on the left side so if you held the phone in your right hand or didn't use any force it was hardly noticeable. Anyway I relocked the phone and restored the phone closest to original state as possible, then I took the phone back after few days and they sent it to closest HTC service center wich was in Latvia, there isn't one in Estonia. After two weeks we got a mail that they were not going to repair it because I had installed "illegal software" on the phone that voids warranty. So I read through the warranty agreement, agreement said that it only covers hardware issues and not software. I didn't find anything in the agreement that says rooting the phone wasn't allowed and would void the warranty. So after that I went to costumer protection board and told them my story, after 3 months of bureaucracy and meetings they agreed that I didn't violate warranty agreement and decided that the phone has to be fixed, everyone agreed on it, even EMT my mobile operator, but HTC refused to fix the phone so EMT gave up and paid for the phone repairs.
So does anyone have experiences with Nexus 5 warranty and issues that might rise from rooting the phone and installing custom ROM. I don't mean if I brick the phone myself, but if similar problem arises that I had with my HTC One X that it's is clearly a factory defect.
Thank you!

↓‬
Lethargy said:
You have a Nexus 5. This isn't a Samsung device or anything of the sort.
Keep in mind that warranty only covers MANUFACTURING defects, not wear and tear damage/defects. Attempting to claim warranty for anything other than manufacturing defects would be fraud.
If you bought from the Play Store, Google will still (unofficially, but they'll do it) accept an RMA claim regardless software state, if its a legitimate manufacturing defect.
If you bought it from elsewhere (and its a legitimate manufacturing defect), simply flash stock if you aren't already on it, relock the bootloader and reset the tamper flag (with a root app lol), then tap on unroot in SuperSU. There is nothing else that shows any sign of possible modification.
If the device doesn't boot at all then the software state is irrelevant as it can't be accessed in the first place.
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vasar said:
Hi!
So I already asked this on the offical Nexus forums, but I thought this question might actually fit much better here.
I'm planning on buying Nexus 5 from my mobile network operator EMT wich is a local operator in Estonia. I'm sure I will at some point root the phone and install custom ROM on it so is this going to void warranty? As I read if the phone isn't bought directly from Google they aren't responsible for warranty so I guess then it's going to local LG service center. So does LG have a problem with rooting and custom ROMs?
A while back I bought HTC One X from EMT(local mobile network operator), so of course as I went home first thing I did was root my phone and install a custom ROM. Then I noticed the phone had a defect, the screen wasn't properly attatched to rest of the case, it was loose and it moved if you pushed on it. The defect wasn't apparent right away because the part where it was loose was on the left side so if you held the phone in your right hand or didn't use any force it was hardly noticeable. Anyway I relocked the phone and restored the phone closest to original state as possible, then I took the phone back after few days and they sent it to closest HTC service center wich was in Latvia, there isn't one in Estonia. After two weeks we got a mail that they were not going to repair it because I had installed "illegal software" on the phone that voids warranty. So I read through the warranty agreement, agreement said that it only covers hardware issues and not software. I didn't find anything in the agreement that says rooting the phone wasn't allowed and would void the warranty. So after that I went to costumer protection board and told them my story, after 3 months of bureaucracy and meetings they agreed that I didn't violate warranty agreement and decided that the phone has to be fixed, everyone agreed on it, even EMT my mobile operator, but HTC refused to fix the phone so EMT gave up and paid for the phone repairs.
So does anyone have experiences with Nexus 5 warranty and issues that might rise from rooting the phone and installing custom ROM. I don't mean if I brick the phone myself, but if similar problem arises that I had with my HTC One X that it's is clearly a factory defect.
Thank you!
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Click to collapse
If you are rooting, you must accept consequences. You must be aware, that rooting is something that is not supposed to be done. That's why manufacturers do lock bootloaders.
Anyway. As you know, you can allways unroot, flash stock and relock bootloader. I don't know what you mean "as close as possible" because I'm not familiar with HTC. I did it with my Nexus 4 here in Slovenia and they did repair it without any question. The same story was also with my XperiaS and all other SE phones which I did a modifications on. But, for example, I use root for deleting stock apps, using Titanium Backup and that's it. I never use modificiated kernels or doing over and underclock CPU.
So, choise is yours.

[Q] What happens finally if you trip Knox? Do you lose your warranty?

Hello
What happens if your Trip Knox on your Samsung Galaxy S6?
Do you lose warranty for hardware issues?

Yes, on most countries you loose your warranty.

roydok said:
Yes, on most countries you loose your warranty.
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What about UK?

xionation said:
What about UK?
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I asked this as I took mine into one of their stores the other day to look at the wireless charging issues I'm having, and they said that knox being tripped wouldn't stop them sending it off for repair but it depends on the technician who gets it at the other end, most use common sense and if the fault is something that has nothing to do with it being rooted etc (hardware fault) they won't reject the repair for it.
tl'dr - It depends on who gets your phone to look at

MariosFFX said:
Hello
What happens if your Trip Knox on your Samsung Galaxy S6?
Do you lose warranty for hardware issues?
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Click to collapse
It depends on where you live, in the EU you do not loose your statutory warranty, unless they can positively proof that you did specific actions which caused the damage. But you do loose the voluntary factory warranty. It is important to know that your statutory warranty is provided by your retailer, not the factory (samsung ).
Anyway even if legally you are entitled to warranty some retailers will try to cheat you out of it and it can be a pain to get your right.

CS Amazon says: your phone is rooted and the rooting is the cause of the malfunction

In last months my Moto G 3rd started giving some problems. Since my phone was bought on Amazon.fr (Europe) I contacted the customer service.
After sending my phone to a repair center it was returned just saying that the warranty had been void because the phone was rooted.
And yes it was rooted since day one. And it started having problems more than a year after that.
This is the email that I send to Amazon.fr, after received my phone saying that the warranty had been void.
Hello
I already received my phone.
In the repair report it's says that I void the warranty of my phone.
This is because my phone is rooted.
But rooting a phone don't void the warranty unless it can be proved that the rooting is the cause of the malfunction.
My phone is rooted since the begin with always worked fine. This is not the cause of the problem.
I send a few documents and links that proves what I'm saying.
It's sad that I send my phone. I paid to send it. I also was charged for my calls to the CHRONOPOST call center.
And in the end I receive the phone the same way I send it in the first place.
https://fsfe.org/freesoftware/legal/flashingdevices.html
http://fsfe.org/freesoftware/legal/flashingdevices.fr.html
https://fsfe.org/activities/ftf/activities.en.html
http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:31999L0044&from=EN
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They replied
Hello,
Following your that you have already received your phone. In the repair report it's says that you void the warranty of your phone. This is because your phone is rooted and the rooting is the cause of the malfunction. I thank you for giving us the documents and links.
We understand your reaction and we apologise for any inconvenience that this problem may have caused.
I have transferred your documents to our department so that they will do the verification and it does not happen in the future.
In your mail, i have noted that you paid to send it and you also was charged for your calls to the CHRONOPOST call centre.
In order to help you, i ask you to send us the receipt of the sending item or tell us the amount so that we will refund you.
You can contact us directly by this email.
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Then I replied back to Amazon.fr
Sorry but I am missing something in this.
This phone is rooted since the beginning. And only now is giving me problems? I don't think so!
That is the worst excuse from tech support ever.
They even try to diagnose the malfunction on the device?
At least they remove the root to see it was the cause of the malfunction?
Or they just send the phone back after checking it was rooted?
Rooting phones don't void warranties like all that links and documents show.
But you need to read it first.
Rooting phones is the only way to run some essential software in Android like TitaniumBackupPro for backups and Cerebrus for anti theft.
This the worst tech support ever from Amazon.
And it even goes against the warranty laws in Europe Union, like all links and documentation provided shows.
Who in Amazon understand something about warrant laws in EU?
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This that last answer form Amazon.fr
Hello,
Following your , in case you want to contact Amazon Legal, you can use the address below:
Direction Juridique d'Amazon.fr
Service Juridique
Amazon EU S.à.r.l.
5 rue Plaetis
L-2338 Luxembourg
Grand-Duché du Luxembourg
Regards,
Cordialement,
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In the repair report it's says that you void the warranty of your phone. This is because your phone is rooted and the rooting is the cause of the malfunction.
This is maybe the worst feedback I had from tech support. And it's from Amazon France.
They didn't even try to diagnose the malfunction.
The phone is rooted and the rooting is the cause of the malfunction.
This worries me because I have another phone bought from Amazon and it's also rooted.
Even knowing that rooting don't void the warranty I am worried that in the future the answer it will be the same.

Bruaca said:
In last months my Moto G 3rd started giving some problems. Since my phone was bought on Amazon.fr (Europe) I contacted the customer service.
After sending my phone to a repair center it was returned just saying that the warranty had been void because the phone was rooted.
And yes it was rooted since day one. And it started having problems more than a year after that.
This is the email that I send to Amazon.fr, after received my phone saying that the warranty had been void.
They replied
Then I replied back to Amazon.fr
This that last answer form Amazon.fr
In the repair report it's says that you void the warranty of your phone. This is because your phone is rooted and the rooting is the cause of the malfunction.
This is maybe the worst feedback I had from tech support. And it's from Amazon France.
They didn't even try to diagnose the malfunction.
The phone is rooted and the rooting is the cause of the malfunction.
This worries me because I have another phone bought from Amazon and it's also rooted.
Even knowing that rooting don't void the warranty I am worried that in the future the answer it will be the same.
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Click to collapse
Yes, your warranty is void... you AGREED to it being void when you received your unlocked token for the bootloader. We all know this, it even gets around EU "law" because you have to agree to it and can chose not to do it.
You have only yourself to blame. Unless you have a Developer Edition device, once you get the unlock code, your device is no longer covered by the Motorola warranty; in other words, please don't blame us if things go wrong, even if they appear unrelated to unlocking the bootloader.
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- Source
The following applies to all devices, except for Developer Edition devices:
Obtaining an unlock code voids all warranties. Once you get the unlock code, your
device is no longer covered by the Motorola warranty, or any other warranty provided
with the device. Neither Motorola, nor your wireless carrier shall have any duty to
provide warranty or customer support for unlocked devices.
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(5) THE FOLLOWING APPLIES TO ALL UNLOCKED DEVICES EXCEPT FOR DEVELOPER
EDITION DEVICES, BY OBTAINING THE UNLOCK CODE FOR THIS DEVICE,
IRRESPECTIVE OF WHETHER THE DEVICE’S BOOTLOADER IS SUBSEQUENTLY
UNLOCKED OR ITS SOFTWARE OR OPERATING SYSTEM IS MODIFIED, USER AGREES
TO WAIVE AND VOID ALL WARRANTIES THAT MAY HAVE BEEN PROVIDED BY
MOTOROLA OR YOUR WIRELESS CARRIER, BOTH EXPRESS AND IMPLIED,
INCLUDING ANY WRITTEN WARRANTY THAT ACCOMPANIED THE DEVICE AT THE
TIME OF PURCHASE OR DELIVERY, AND AGREES THAT ANY RIGHTS OR REMEDIES
PROVIDED BY SUCH A WARRANTY ARE NULL AND VOID. NEITHER MOTOROLA, NOR
YOUR WIRELESS CARRIER, MAKES ANY WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, AND
MOTOROLA AND YOUR WIRELESS CARRIER DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES OF EVERY
KIND, EXPRESS, IMPLIED, OR STATUTORY, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO,
IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR
PURPOSE IN CONNECTION WITH AN UNLOCKED DEVICE. USER ACKNOWLEDGES
AND AGREES THAT ALL SUCH WARRANTIES ARE HEREBY EXCLUDED AND THAT ALL
UNLOCKED DEVICES ARE PROVIDED "AS IS," WITH NO WARRANTY OF ANY KIND;
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- Source
And even on your phone you had to acknowledge it... (see pic)
Sorry...

So if understand what you said.
The way that the Motorola bootloader unlocking procedure is made will void automatically any warranty.
Because the user was to accept on site that to unlocking the bootloader will void the warranty.
I thought there was laws still backing up the warranty.
And that warning had no effect.
Is this is really true no more Motorola phones for me.

Bruaca said:
So if understand what you said.
The way that the Motorola bootloader unlocking procedure is made will void automatically any warranty.
Because the user was to accept on site that to unlocking the bootloader will void the warranty.
I thought there was laws still backing up the warranty.
And that warning had no effect.
Is this is really true no more Motorola phones for me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Motorola isn't alone, most OEMs that allow unlocking have adopted this policy... With the noticable exception of Pixel/Nexus and OnePlus.

i didn't realize until now that this "online registration" and "help in unlocking" is a trick actually. Interestingly Samsung doesnt give away codes unlike Motorola, Sony, Xiaomi etc.. Also no agreements/commitments are shown on the screen, making it "rootable" enough right behind the best-in-class Pixel and Oneplus. And I am aware Samsung centers do repair rooted phones. Thou i never experienced that, since I never ever had a phone repaired in 20 years.
Anyway, horrible practice and these bad brands are on my blacklist.

KNOX warranty void in Europe

Hi,
I've got an Exynos S7 and I read that rooting it trips KNOX and voids the hardware warranty. But I also read that i'ts illegal in EU and Samsung must repair your phone when you have a hardware issue, even if KNOX is tripped. As I live in France, it should be that. So I want to know if someone living in EU experienced something like that : do they repair it without saying anything? do they refuse to repair it so in this case : can you contest ? how ?
(Sorry if my English looks average...)

I was at Samsung Oficial Service with Knox 0x1 to replace my headphones bc they broken so fast (4 months) and they canceled my warranty. I still dont need warranty but if i will need i make a complain at Consumer Protection and it should fix that.

andrei1412 said:
I was at Samsung Oficial Service with Knox 0x1 to replace my headphones bc they broken so fast (4 months) and they canceled my warranty. I still dont need warranty but if i will need i make a complain at Consumer Protection and it should fix that.
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Ohw okay. What country are you from ?

RayaneHmdi said:
Ohw okay. What country are you from ?
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Romania.